


Strep on Tour

by awgaskarth0805



Category: All Time Low (Band)
Genre: Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-10-20 19:54:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17628650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awgaskarth0805/pseuds/awgaskarth0805
Summary: Jack gets strep on tour, and Alex wants to help him.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is set in the Nothing Personal era.

“Jack, are you ready to go on?” Alex asked, peaking his head into the green room that Jack was in.  
“Yeah, I think so,” Jack replied, coughing.  
“Are you okay man?” Alex asked.  
“Yeah, my throat just hurts some, but it’s no big deal,” Jack replied.  
“Okay, let’s go on then. We have to be onstage in about five minutes from now,” Alex replied. As the two of them were walking, Jack noticed that his body was hurting some. He shrugged it off, they had a show to do. Besides, he’d be fine. He put on his guitar and noticed that it felt heavier than it normally did. He did his best to ignore the feeling as much as possible. They all ran onstage and started to play their first song. Jack did his best to talk to Alex between songs like normal, but his throat had started to hurt so much that this was becoming a challenge. He coughed quite a bit but didn’t mess up any of his parts. The thing that was getting him through this show, was that they had a four-day break after this show, so if he was getting sick, he’d have some time to fight it off and be better for their next show. When they were done, they thanked the crowd, and walked offstage.  
“Hey, are you okay? I saw you coughing a lot.” Alex observed, walking with Jack.  
“My throat hurts a lot,” Jack replied in a raspy voice.  
“Maybe you’re coming down with something,” Alex said, thinking out loud.  
“Maybe. I just want to sleep now, I want to try and get rid of whatever this is,” Jack said, yawning. Even stretching his throat for that hurt him.  
“Luckily, it’s a travel night, so we can all just go onto the bus and relax some,” Alex pointed out.  
“Very true, you have no idea how much I’ve looked forward to that this evening,” Jack replied.  
“If you feel worse in the morning, tell one of us,” Alex requested.  
“I will, don’t worry,” Jack replied, before coughing again. Alex rubbed his friend’s back until the fit finally went away.   
“Let’s get you on the bus,” Alex decided. The two of them walked across the parking lot, and onto the bus. Jack changed into his PJs, then went straight to bed, falling asleep quickly.  
\-------  
When Jack woke up the next morning, he felt a lot worse. His aches were more prominent, he had a killer headache, and his throat somehow felt even worse. Remembering his promise to Alex, he got up to go to the front of the bus and tell his bandmates what was going on. Standing made his head spin, but he regained some of his balance before going up front. Alex and Rian were sitting at the table with Rian’s laptop, and it looked like they were planning and scheduling things together.  
“Hey guys,” Jack rasped out, coughing. Talking and coughing made his throat feel like it was on fire.  
“Damn Jack, you sound like shit!” Rian exclaimed. Jack just flipped him off in reply.  
“You feel worse than you did last night, don’t you?” Alex asked, to which Jack nodded in reply. Alex got up and felt Jack’s forehead.  
“You’re definitely sick, we should take you to get looked at,” Alex decided.  
“It’s going to have to be later, I have to make some phone calls about some stuff coming up in the near future for us. I won’t be able to take him for about three hours,” Rian explained.  
“I can take him, look up urgent cares that are near here,” Alex replied.  
“You can’t take him,” Rian replied flatly.  
“Why not?” Alex asked back.  
“Dude you have the worst immune system of anyone I’ve ever met in my life. Only one sick band member at a time, please,” Rian replied.  
“I’ll be fine, we need to focus on helping Jack right now. Besides, my immune system is great, thank you very much,” Alex countered. Rian looked at Jack, seeing how miserable he clearly was.  
“Fine, but don’t be stupid. I’ll find an urgent care close to here,” Rian decided, starting to type something.  
“Okay, so there’s one about ten minutes away from here. Give the driver this address,” Rian said, handing Alex a slip of paper that he’d written the address on. Alex walked up to the front and explained everything to the driver. He helped Jack get some shoes on, then put on his own. Jack had another coughing fit, making him wince from the pain in his throat. Alex felt bad for his friend, he knew how sucky it was being sick on the road. About ten minutes later, the bus stopped in front of the urgent care.  
“Good luck, guys,” Rian said as Alex helped Jack to his feet.  
“Thanks man. I’ll text you if we need anything,” Alex replied. He helped Jack off of the bus, and into the clinic. They walked in, and to the receptionist’s desk.  
“How can I help you boys?” the lady asked.  
“So, we’re in a band currently on tour. Yesterday, my friend, Jack, woke up not feeling great, and he’s feeling even worse today. We were hoping that someone could take a look at him, and figure out what’s wrong,” Alex explained.  
“We can absolutely do that. You’re the first people to come in today, since we just opened up. You guys just need to fill out this paper work, and you’ll be called back in about ten minutes,” she explained. Alex took a pen and clipboard from her, then sat down with Jack in the waiting area. Alex started to fill out the paperwork for Jack.  
“Dude, what’s your social security number?” Alex asked, getting stuck.  
“Why the hell would I say that out loud?” Jack asked, coughing.  
“Fine, can you write it, then? I don’t know it,” Alex replied.  
“Really? I know yours,” Jack replied, taking the board.  
“Yeah, right,” Alex said, laughing. Jack leaned over and whispered the numbers into Alex’s ear.  
“How the fuck do you know that?” Alex asked, shocked.  
“We’ve taken you to these kinds of places so many times, so of course I know it by now. Who do you think does your paperwork?” Jack explained.  
“I guess that makes sense,” Alex replied. He finished filling out the paperwork, then put the board back on the receptionist desk.  
“I feel absolutely terrible. I don’t know how you deal with feeling like this so often,” Jack groaned, triggering another coughing fit.   
“Practice, I guess. Hopefully, whatever you have will go away in a couple of days. Any longer than that can make you feel like you’re dying,” Alex said. Seconds later, a door opened up.  
“Mr. Barakat?” a man called. Jack raised his hand, then Alex helped him get up. They followed the doctor into an exam room, then the door was shut.  
“So, what seems to be the problem?” the doctor asked, turning on the computer.  
“I woke up feeling a bit off yesterday, like I felt kind of achy, and my throat was absolutely killing me. We performed last night, which was mostly fine, and-“ Jack cut himself off by coughing, and Alex rubbed circles in his back.  
“As I was saying, I woke up this morning, and now my throat feels even worse. Every time I talk, cough, or swallow, it makes my throat feel like it’s on fire,” Jack explained.  
“Let’s take your temperature, then there’s something else I want to do,” the doctor explained. He grabbed a thermometer and put it in Jack’s mouth.  
“101, you have a fever, which I figured already,” the doctor said, before walking over to the small sink in the corner of the room. He opened a cabinet and pulled out a long cotton swab.  
“Now, this isn’t fun, but it’ll only last a couple of seconds. I need you to lay down for me, and I’m going to swab the back of your throat, to see if this is strep. After, I’m going to run a test on it, and we’ll know in about fifteen minutes. Go ahead and lay back for me,” the doctor explained. Jack did what he was told and opened his mouth.  
“One, two, three,” the doctor swabbed Jack’s throat as fast as possible, making Jack gag.  
“I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes with the results,” the doctor walked out, and Jack sat up, still gagging.  
“Are you alright? I know that sucks,” Alex said, putting his hand onto Jack’s back.  
“Don’t know,” Jack said, still gagging. Alex grabbed the small wastebasket in the corner of the room, and gave it to Jack, for just in case. After gagging a few more times, Jack calmed himself down.  
“Are you okay now?” Alex asked, still rubbing Jack’s back.  
“I think so,” Jack replied.  
“I know those swabs aren’t fun. Hopefully you don’t actually have strep, because that really does suck,” Alex said.  
“Yeah, but I honestly wouldn’t be too surprised. My throat really does hurt a lot,” Jack replied.  
“Well, I’ll help you feel better, no matter what it is,” Alex promised.  
“Rian is going to kill you if you get sick from me. Actually, he’d probably kill both of us,” Jack said.  
“Well, he can blow me. You’ve helped me so many times, it’s my turn to hope you now,” Alex replied.  
“I appreciate that,” Jack said, smiling some. He suddenly broke into another coughing fit, and Alex rubbed his back until it went away. Right after it stopped, the doctor walked back into the room.  
“So, I ran the test, and I hate to say it, but you do have strep,” he reported.  
“So, does he get an antibiotic then? We’re in a band on tour, and we’re not from here,” Alex explained.  
“There’s a Walgreen’s two blocks from here, I’ll send it there. It’ll probably be ready in about ten minutes, and I’ll go ahead and send it there,” the doctor said, typing on the computer.  
“It’s all ready now. You’ll be fully back to normal in about a week, but you should be able to perform with only mild discomfort in about three days. Feel better, Jack,” the doctor explained, before walking out.  
“Let’s go get that prescription, then we can get you back on the bus, so you can rest up,” Alex said, helping Jack up. They walked out of the office, and to the Walgreens. It only took them a couple of minutes to get there, since the streets were small. Alex went to the counter and got the medicine for Jack. When they were done, they walked back to the bus. When they got on, they saw Rian in the same spot they left him in, and Zack was with him.  
“So, what happened?” Rian asked.  
“He has strep. He’ll be back to normal in a week, but he’ll be okay to perform at our next show,” Alex explained.  
“Okay, sounds good. Alex, you need to get away from him,” Rian said, half joking and half serious.  
“Rian, I’ll be fine, can you stop?” Alex asked, sounding annoyed.  
“Fine, but if you get sick, don’t come whining to me,” Rian replied.  
“Let’s get you set up in the back,” Alex said, turning to Jack. He just nodded and followed Alex to the back of the bus. He laid down on the couch, then Alex went to Jack’s bunk, and grabbed his pillow and blanket. He helped Jack get comfortable, then grabbed him some water and a bucket, for just in case.  
“How’re you feeling?” Alex asked, sitting next to his best friend.  
“Shitty. My head hurts, my throat is killing me, and my stomach feels a bit weird, too,” Jack said, groaning.  
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Alex replied.  
“This really sucks,” Jack said, as some tears started to form in his eyes.  
“Hey, don’t cry. I know that this isn’t fun, but you’ll feel so much better soon, I promise,” Alex said, hugging his bandmate.  
“Sorry, I don’t know where all of those emotions came from,” Jack replied.  
“It’s okay, I get like that when I’m sick, too,” Alex reassured.  
“Oh, I know that,” Jack said in a joking voice.  
“Hey, no need to be sarcastic,” Alex replied, laughing some. Jack took a sip of his water, then sat closer to Alex.   
“Can we watch Home Alone?” Jack asked.  
“Sure, I’ll put it on for us,” Alex said back. He got up and set up the movie in the DVD player. Alex sat back down, and Jack immediately snuggled into his friend, since he was always very clingy when he was unwell. About twenty minutes into the movie, Jack fell asleep. Around the same time, Alex started to get really thirsty.  
I don’t think Jack has drank from this yet, and I can’t exactly get up with him on top of me, so I guess this will have to do, Alex thought to himself. Alex drank some of the water, then set the glass down. He continued watching the movie, and a couple minutes later, his eyes widened. He remembered that Jack did in fact drink from that cup earlier. He hoped that by some stroke of luck, he wouldn’t get sick, but he also knew himself, and there was absolutely no way that Jack’s illness wouldn’t not become his own in a few days’ time.  
\---------  
The past three days had been pretty brutal for Jack. He got sick sometimes, but it usually was never as severe as this was. After the first two days, his fever had lowered considerably, but it was still there. On the final off day, Jack woke up feeling a lot better. He was definitely still sick, but nowhere near as bad as he’d been feeling the past few days. He was glad that he still had one more day to rest before performing again. Alex, on the other hand, woke up feeling pretty bad. He’d started to develop a cough the day before and knew that it was only a matter of time until he felt awful. His throat hurt, but not as intensely as strep does. He figured that he had at least a couple more days until it set in. Instead of doing the logical thing, and telling his bandmates about how he felt, he decided to keep this to himself. They had a show tomorrow, and he didn’t want to have to cancel it. They’d had three and almost four days off, and he didn’t want anymore. Alex decided that he should go check on Jack. He got up and was immediately struck with a headache.  
This is just great, Alex thought to himself. He took a deep breath, then walked to the back of the bus, where Jack was. When he opened the door, he saw that Jack was awake and watching the TV.  
“Hey Jack, how’re you feeling?” Alex asked his friend.  
“A lot better, actually. I’m actually excited for tomorrow night, since I feel so much better,” Jack said, coughing a little at the end.  
“That’s great! Performing sick, especially as sick as you were, really sucks,” Alex replied, coughing a little as well.  
“Are you okay man?” Jack asked, sounding concerned.  
“Yeah, just a little tickle,” Alex lied.  
“I’m actually shocked that you haven’t caught this yet,” Jack said, laughing some.  
“Hey, why does everyone think that my immune system is such trash?” Alex asked, in a mock hurt tone.  
“Because it is, you’re like constantly sick,” Jack said, still laughing.  
“You and the others suck,” Alex replied, now laughing. Laughing hurt his throat some, but he tried to hide his discomfort. =  
“Since today is our last rest day, can we just watch movies all day? All four of us?” Jack asked.  
“I think that Rian and Zack are out sightseeing right now, but we can, and they can join us when they get back,” Alex explained.  
“Okay, sounds good. I’m surprised you didn’t go with them,” Jack observed.  
“I didn’t really want to. Besides, someone has to be here to take care of you,” Alex defended. Truthfully, Alex declined the sightseeing invitation he’d gotten the day before, because he was starting to feel bad. But, as far as his bandmates knew, it was to take care of Jack. Alex grabbed the remote and put on the first Hangover movie.  
“Hell yeah!” Jack exclaimed about the selection. Alex just smiled at him in reply. About thirty minutes into the movie, Jack fell asleep. Shortly after, Alex felt his stomach start to churn. He got up quietly, not wanting to disturb Jack, and made his way into the bathroom. He kneeled in front of the toilet and gagged a little. Nothing ended up coming up, causing Alex to groan out of annoyance. Alex found the extra thermometer that was dubbed as his, since he needed it so much. He put it in his mouth, and then read 99.8, meaning he did have a fever now. He started to assess how he was feeling. His throat hurt now more than it did when he’d first gotten up, his head was pounding and felt congested, and he felt a bit chilly, due to the fever that he was currently running. His stomach was still hurting, but not as much as when he’d first come into the bathroom. He groaned, which set off a small coughing fit. He tried to suppress it, so he wouldn’t give himself away. Once he calmed himself, he walked out of the bathroom. Luckily, Jack was still asleep, and Alex took his place next to him back. Not much later, Alex decided that he would take a nap, too.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Alex awoke in his bunk feeling even worse than he did than he had the day before. He spent most of the day before just relaxing with Jack. Luckily, no one figured out that he was feeling bad. But he felt significantly worse now. His throat was now killing him, his body ached, and he still felt very congested. To make things worse, he still felt nauseas. Alex thought that this would affect everything but his stomach, since Jack didn’t really throw up while he was sick, but since it was Alex, of course he had to get what Jack had, but worse. He turned his phone on and saw that it was already noon. He got up with a groan, and waked to the back. The other three were already all back there, playing a racing game on the Xbox.   
“Look who’s finally up!” Rian exclaimed.  
“Come join us!” Zack invited. The idea of staring at a screen seemed like the least appealing thing possible to Alex right now due to the feeling in his stomach, but he said yes to not blow his cover.  
“How’re you feeling, Jack?” Alex asked, sitting down.  
“Better! So much better than I did on the day of our last show,” Jack replied.  
“He still has a fever, but it’s only a little over 99,” Zack explained.   
“That’s great!” Alex exclaimed.  
“I’m shocked you never got sick, Alex. You spent a lot of time over the last few days with me. Maybe your immune system is better than we give you credit for,” Jack observed, in a joking voice.  
“Yeah, I guess so,” Alex replied, going along with it.   
“Enough talking, let’s play!” Rian exclaimed. They added Alex in, and started a new game. The screen and moving bus together were making Alex feel sicker, but he did his best to ignore the feeling. After about thirty minutes, they turned the gave off, because Jack got tired and wanted to take a nap. Rian and Zack left the room, since they knew that Alex would stay with Jack. Alex decided that he’d shut his eyes for a bit, too, and would hopefully wake up feeling at least a bit better.  
\-------  
About three hours later, they had to go in the venue for soundcheck. Alex and Jack were both awake, and Alex felt significantly worse. His throat felt worse, and he felt even more achy. He figured that his fever had gone up some, due to this.  
“Are you guys ready?” Rian asked, poking his head into the back of the bus.  
“Yeah, I think so. Right, Alex?” Jack asked in reply.  
“Yeah, let’s go,” Alex replied. The four of them walked across the lot and into the venue. They grabbed their instruments and walked onstage.  
“Jack don’t push yourself too hard,” Rian advised from behind his drum kit.  
“I won’t, don’t worry,” Jack replied with a cough. With that, they started their soundcheck. Jack seemed to do fine, only coughing a couple of times. Alex, on the other hand, wasn’t doing so well. The singing was only making his throat hurt more, and his muscle aches got worse as time went on. He did his best to hide these things, since he still didn’t want to admit his defeat yet. By the time they were done, Alex felt like his throat was on fire. They all huddled around each other like usual once they were done.  
“That was great, guys. Go rest on the bus until the show, Jack,” Rian suggested.  
“Okay, Alex will you come with me?” Jack asked.  
“Sure I will,” Alex replied, sounding a bit raspy.  
“Are you okay, Alex?” Zack asked.  
“Yeah, just some allergies. No big deal,” Alex lied.  
“Oh, okay then,” Zack said back.  
“Let’s go,” Jack said, looking at Alex.  
“Okay, time to relax,” Alex said, following Jack out to the bus. They got on and went right to the back lounge. They turned on a movie, and both drifted off.  
\-----------  
Alex woke up an hour later to his stomach churning. He saw that Jack was still asleep, and quietly got up. He figured that Rian and Zack were still in the venue, and Alex went into the bathroom. He kneeled in front of the toilet and started to gag. Seconds later, he started to get sick. This made his throat sting even more, making some small tears form in his eyes. He found the thermometer when he was done and used it. It said that his fever had risen up to 100.7 now. He groaned, then rinsed his mouth out some. He walked back to the lounge, and saw that Jack was still sleeping, much to his relief. He sat back down on the couch and went on his phone. About twenty minutes later, Jack woke up.  
“How’re you feeling?” Alex asked.  
“Pretty good, I’ll definitely be back to myself in a couple of days,” Jack replied.  
“Good, since that’s what the doctor told us. We need to go back into the venue, since there’s only about thirty minutes until showtime,” Alex said, surprised at how much time had already passed.  
“Okay, let’s go, Jack said, getting up. Alex got up too but was hit with a dizzy spell.  
“Are you all good, man?” Jack asked.  
“Yeah, just got up too fast. I’m fine,” Alex replied. Jack didn’t fully believe him, but he knew that questioning Alex about this wasn’t going to do anything aside from piss him off. The two of them walked across the lot and into the venue’s stage door. They stayed in a green room until they had to be at the stage entrance. He felt pretty bad, his throat was killing him, he had aches and chills, and his stomach was cramping up, and he really wasn’t sure how much longer he could hide feeling like this form the band. He hoped that he could at least go until Jack was fully better. He coughed into his arm, then walked out to the stage entrance. The other three were already there, getting their instruments ready to go. Alex put on his guitar, and it felt much heavier than usual.  
“Are you okay, Alex, you don’t seem quite like yourself,” Rian observed.  
“Yeah, I’m all good, just a bit sleepy, I guess,” Alex lied.  
“Oh, well you better wake up!” Zack added.  
“You guys have to go on now!” the stage tech exclaimed. They all ran onstage and took their positions.  
“We’re All Time Low, and we’re excited to be here!” Alex yelled into the microphone, making the audience cheer. Yelling made Alex’s throat hurt more than it already did, but he tried to ignore it. He started to play their first song, Lost in Stereo. Thankfully, the terrible feeling he had wasn’t hurting his ability to play. As the show went on, his throat hurt more and more, and about halfway through their set, he started to lose his voice some. Jack gave him a confused look once he noticed this, but Alex did his best to ignore it. When they only had five songs left, Alex’s stomach started to do flips again. he tried to deal with the feeling and suppress it, but it got more intense as time went on. In the middle of their last song, Dear Maria, Alex stopped playing and singing. All of his bandmates gave him confused looks as his face started to turn a pale green. He quickly ran offstage, gave his guitar to the nearest crew member, and went into the bathroom that was right off of the stage. He went into a stall, locked it, then kneeled in front of the toilet. Seconds later, he began to get sick. Throwing up made his throat sting and burn even more than it already did. Due to the pain, tears started spilling down his cheeks as he continued to get sick. When he finally got a break, he leaned against the door, still crying. He couldn’t believe that he’d gotten so sick so fast. He started to cough, which hurt his throat more, resulting in more tears. His stomach lurched, and he started to get sick again. he heard the door to the bathroom open a few minutes later.   
“Alex?” he heard Rian call.  
“Are you in here?” Jack followed up.  
“Yes, I am,” Alex said between coughs. His voice was basically shot now, and every word made his throat burn even more.  
“Can you open the door for us?” Zack asked. Alex used all of the energy he had left to undo the lock on the door. His bandmates couldn’t believe how miserable their best friend looked.  
“You caught what Jack had, didn’t you?” Rian asked. Alex just nodded, not wanting to make his throat hurt even more.  
“I’m so sorry, Alex,” Jack said, sounding guilty.   
“Not your fault,” Alex rasped out.  
“Yeah, we knew this would happen since he always gets sick. Alex, you should’ve let me and Zack handle Jack,” Rian said, sounding a bit annoyed.  
“I accidently drank from a cup that was Jack’s on the first day he was sick, I wouldn’t have gotten it this bad if I hadn’t done that,” Alex explained, coughing.  
“Why didn’t you tell us that?” Rian asked back.  
“I wanted to avoid this fucking conversation, Alex replied in a frustrated tone.  
“Rian, you’re being kind of mean to Alex right now. What he did was stupid, but come on, now’s not the time for this, he looks miserable,” Zack defended.  
“You’re right. Alex, I’m sorry, how can we help you feel better?” Rian asked.  
“I really want to just go back on the bus and rest, can you guys help me?” Alex asked.  
“Of course,” Jack replied. He helped Alex up off the floor, supporting most of Alex’s weight.  
“We’re going to talk to the crew and everyone else about moving some dates,” Rian said, referring to himself and Zack.  
“Don’t, I’ll be okay,” Alex argued.  
“Alex, taking a couple days off to rest and heal is perfectly okay,” Zack reasoned.  
“He’s right, I think a couple of days off will be good for you, especially after what happened tonight,” Jack added.  
“Fine, let’s just go,” Alex said, accepting his defeat. Jack and Alex walked out of the bathroom and slowly made their way to the bus. Alex coughed quite a bit, slowing them down some, but they eventually made it on. Jack helped Alex change into comfier clothes, then took him to the back lounge, and set him up with pillows and blankets.  
“How’re you feeling?” Alex asked Jack, still being more concerned for his friend than himself. Jack had forgotten that he was still technically sick, since he was so concerned for Alex now.  
“Not too bad, I think I want to see if I still have a fever, and you should see how high yours is” Jack suggested. Jack went to the bathroom to get the thermometer that he’d been using and grabbed Alex’s as well. Alex took his and used it.  
“It says 100.6, did you take your temperature earlier?” Jack asked.  
“Yeah, that was a degree higher than it was when I did it earlier,” Alex replied.  
“Oh shit, I can’t believe that we never figured out that you were sick,” Jack said, before using his thermometer.   
“What’s it say?” Alex asked, coughing some.  
“99.1,” Jack replied.  
“That’s not too bad,” Alex said.  
“Yeah, I don’t actually feel sick anymore, which is a miracle. That whole experience was brutal, I don’t know how you do this so often,” Jack said.  
“You sort of get used to it after a while, I guess,” Alex explained.  
“Hey, sorry I kind of poisoned you,” Jack said after a moment of silence.  
“No need to apologize, man. It wasn’t your fault. I kind of knew that this would end up happening anyway,” Alex replied.  
“Should we watch a movie?” Jack asked. Alex just nodded in reply. They turned on a cartoon and fell asleep not too far into it.  
\---------  
The next day, Jack took Alex to an urgent care, and he tested positive for strep. His voice was shot from the day before, and Alex was placed on vocal rest, making it a quiet few days. When Alex woke up on his third sick day, his voice was almost completely back to normal.  
“I can talk again!” he exclaimed, his voice still sounding a bit messed up.  
“That’s good, since we didn’t cancel tomorrow’s show,” Rian replied.  
“I’m so ready to get back onstage, this really sucked,” Alex said.  
“Let’s see if your fever’s gone down,” Jack said, handing Alex a thermometer. At this point, Jack was completely better, and was helping Rian and Zack care for Alex.  
“99.5, that’s a lot better than it’s been the past few days,” Jack said. He was right on this, just two days before, it read 102.1.  
“Fucking finally. I forgot how much strep sucks,” Alex replied.  
“Maybe next time, you’ll actually take my advice,” Rian said in a joking voice.  
“Yeah, right,” Alex replied, making everyone laugh.  
\---------  
The next day, Alex’s fever was almost totally gone, and they performed their show. Alex was glad to have such great friends, and the whole thing taught Jack that he was very lucky to have Alex as a best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of this story!! It was a lot longer than I thought it would be, I wrote it about a year ago. I don't have many other works ready to go, so it may take a bit longer before the next story is up. Send requests if you have them! Lots of love, Liv

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for going so long without posting!! This will have a second part as soon as I get it typed up!! I hope you all liked this! Send me prompts/requests if you have them!! Lots of love, Liv.


End file.
